Process and apparatus for preheating feed water



May 14, 1929. E. F. HOLINGER PROCESS AND APPARATUS FOR PREHEAI'ING FEED WATER Filed Aug. 4, 1926 on O T N E V W ATTiIJRNEY i atented May 14, 1929.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

EMIL I. HOLINGER, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGIN'OR, BY MESNE ASSIGNMENTS, TO

HUDSON ELECTRICAL HEATING CORPORATION, OF NEW YORK, N. Y., A CORPORA- TION OF NEW YORK.

PROGESS AND APPARATUS FOR PREHEATING FEED WATER.

Application filed August 4, 1926. Serial No. 126,967.

My invention relates to the production of increased economy in the heating of water in general and more particularly is designed to develop an improved method and apparatus for heating water for domestic use.

Nearly all dwelling houses are equipped with water heaters operated by electricity, gas or coal, which are independent from the house heating plant for use in summer when the heating plant is out of operation, and often also used the year around. Such water heaters are usually adjusted to raise water to a temperature of from 150 to 200 degrees Fahrenheit, the lower temperature being that usually defined as the minimum temperature of hot water, because it is the temperature at or above which it is impossible for one to stand immersion of the hands therein without practically unbearable pain from the heat. The average temperature of Water supplied from the usual water distributing system in cities is 50 degrees Fahrenheit or lower, the temperature of the water supplied in New York city, for instance, running often as low as 40 degrees and, during the winter months, even lower. Thus the range of temperature through which such water is to be raised in the water heating system runs on the average a little over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The room temperature of the average American living room or work room runs from 70 to 80 degrees Fahrenheit when artificially heated,

" course, in summer sometimes higher.

and, or I Obviously, if the higher temperature of such room would be imparted to the feed water supply to the water heater, thus raising it from 80 to. 4.0 degrees without consumption of additional fuel or electric current, a saving of from 25 to 35% of the artificial heat otherwise required for maintaining the hot water supply would be efi'ected. According to my invention it is proposed to accomplish this saving by inserting, in the feed water connections, any suitable form of water container specifically designed to permit the room temperature to be absorbed thereby and placing such feed water preheater in one of the rooms of the house, preferably that one normally maintained at the highest temperature.

The best forms of apparatus at present known to me embodying my invention with one modification thereof, are illustrated in the accompanying sheet of drawings in which,

Fig. 1 is a vertical section of a portion of a building with my invention installed therein.

Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of one form of preheater.

I Fig. 3 is an end view of the same and,

Fig. 4 illustrates a modified form of preheater.

Throughout the drawings like reference characters indicate like parts. 1, 1, represent portions of the walls of the building. 2 represents the basement or cellar thereof containing any form of house heater suchas the steam boiler 6, and a water heater 9. 3 is a portion of the main floor, and 4 a portion of the second floor, forming with the walls of the nected to the water supply 10, while its upper end is connected by the pipe 10 to the feed water inlet of the water heater 9.

One form of preheater illustrated in Figs. 2 and 3 comprises the outer cylindrical shell 15 of metal, and the inner cylindrical shell 16, and the annular heads 17, 17.

18 (Fig. 4:) represents a coil form of preheater which may be substituted for the form shown in Figs. 2 and 3.

Preferably the preheater 11 is placed in the upper portion of the room where the temperature of the air is highest. It may be placed in the room 2, where the atmosphere will be heated by the waste heat radiated from the boil r 6, and from the water heater 9, or it may be placed in any other room which is normally maintained at a higher temperature, as in the kitchen 5 or preheaters may be placed in a plurality of rooms as shown in the drawings.

The operation of my invention is evident from the preceding explanation. The prcheater 11 may be of any preferred :form

which has a large area of surface exposed to the atmosphere of the room relative to the cubic contents of preheater, so that the water standing in, or passing through, such preheater, will readily absorb heat from the atmosphere and bethereby raised approximately to room temperature. As the hot water .is usually drawn intermittently from the water heater 9, the feed water temporarily held by the preheater 11 during the periodswheuno hot water is being drawn,'will usually have time to absorb sufficient heat to raise it to room temperature. Preferably the cubic contents of the preheater 11 should approximate the cubic contents of the water space in the main water heater 9, although in certain cases it might be advisable to have the capacity of the preheater 11 exceed that of the 'main heater 9. I believe it advisable to have the preheater 11 arranged in any inclined or nearly vertical position as indicated in the drawings with the outlet therefrom located at the upper end, while the inlet is located at the lower end, so that when water is flowing through the preheater it will be progressively subjected to the act-ion of the increasing temperatures existing in the upper portions of the room.

While I have illustrated my invention asapplied to a dwelling'house, it would be equally useful in factories and might also be employed to advantage in power plants, the preheater being located in the boiler room which is usually maintained at a high temperature despite all efi'orts to insulate the steam boilers and prevent waste of heat. The advantage of the invention in all its forms arises from the utilization of a portion o f the heat unavoidably otherwise wasted in the generation of power and the heating of water'or in the excessive heating of the upper strata of the atmosphere of any artificially heated room in order to maintain the desired temperature in the lower portions of said room or rooms.

As the moisture of the atmosphere sometimes condenses on the preheater in sufiicient quantities to cause water to drip from the same I may provide a water collector 19 excessively heated at some portion thereof,

of a source of cold water supply, a prcheater connected thereto and disposed in such excessively heated portion of said room, said preheater including walls arranged to'transmit the heat from said excessively heated portion of said room to the water, a water heater, connections from said preheater to said water heater, and a service outlet from said water heater.

2. The combination, with a room heated to normal habitable temperature but being excessively heated at the upper portion thereof, of a source of cold water supply, a preheater connected thereto and disposed in the upper portion of said room, said prcheatcr including walls arranged to transmit the heat from said upper portion of the room to the water, a water heater, connections from said preheater to said water heater, and a service outlet from said water heater.

3. The process of heating water consisting of utilizing the excessive heat in the upper portion of a room heated to normal habitable temperature to preheat the water to a substantial extent, and then further heatin the preheated water by combustion of fue to the temperature desired.

4. The process of heating water consisting of utilizing the excessive heat in any portion of a room, designed for occupation by human beings and artificially heated, to preheat the water to a substantial extent, and then further heating said preheated water by combustion of fuel to the temperature desired.

EMIL F. HOLINGER. 

